Customizable printable solutions for delivery of inhalants

ABSTRACT

Generating a printable inhalant solution may include selecting identifiers for one or more identified chemicals and creating, for each identified chemical, a chemical specification that includes at least a quantity of the chemical. The chemical specifications in the aggregate may include a chemical signature of the selected identified chemicals. Further, a printable solution may be mechanically printed onto a predetermined flammable base substrate.

BACKGROUND

A common way to ingest substances is to smoke those substances, such asby burning a base substrate that contains one or more active ingredientsby which the active ingredients are converted into an inhalant as“smoke”, followed by the inhalation of the resulting smoke.

SUMMARY

Presently, the use of inhalants via smoking is common for both medicinaland recreational use. For example, various blends of strains of growncannabis and related substances, when smoked, are associated withexperiences. Those experiences may include not only sensory effects suchas taste and smell, but also pharmacological effects. By way of anotherexample, tobacco products are sometimes blended to deliver a desired setof sensory effects. However, such blends may be costly and/or difficultto obtain.

An arbitrary blend of substances can be characterized as a set ofchemicals and their associated amounts. A need may arise to specify aknown blend by such a set of chemical amounts, and subsequently tomechanically generate those chemicals using less costly and/or morereadily available materials to closely match at least some of theexperiences of the characterized arbitrary blend.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description is set forth with reference to the accompanyingfigures. In the figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference numberidentifies the figure in which the reference number first appears. Theuse of the same reference numbers in different figures indicates similaror identical items or features.

FIG. 1 is a context diagram for an example of customizable printablesolutions for delivery of inhalants.

FIG. 2 is a diagram of exemplary chemical signatures and operations onchemical signatures.

FIG. 3 is a hardware, software, and communications diagram for anexemplary environment for customizable printable solutions for deliveryof inhalants to be implemented.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary chemical printer for printableinhalant solutions.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of example client and server softwarecomponents and/or applications for customizable printable solutions fordelivery of inhalants.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart for exemplary printer operations for customizableprintable solutions for delivery of inhalants.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart for exemplary client and server softwareoperations for customizable printable solutions for delivery ofinhalants.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Context of Customizable Printable Solutions forDelivery of Inhalants

Historically, people have prepared various plant products, includingtobacco and cannabis, and dried and cured various strains of thoseproducts for smoking. Specially, smoking involved burning the curedproducts, thereby creating inhalants for ingestion. In this way, smokingbecame known as a method of delivery of inhalants.

While initial reasons for smoking may have included pharmaceuticaleffects, people have taken to optimizing the holistic experience ofsmoking. This includes selecting specific strains and applying specificpreparation methods to create a targeted experience. The experience ofingesting these selected strains includes not only a specificpharmaceutical effect, but also sensory experiences including taste andsmell. For example, flavorings such as menthol and mint have been addedto mask the harshness of tobacco. By way of another example, strainshave been bred for targeted concentrations of active pharmaceuticalchemicals. Thus, a targeted experience may refer to the sum of thesensory, pharmaceutical, and other physical effects, resulting fromconsuming, via smoking, material comprised of a set of chemicals inassociated amounts.

While targeted experiences may be successfully created by specificstrain selection and specific preparation methods, the strains may bedifficult or expensive to obtain and the specific preparation methodsmay be unknown. However, the resulting product from the strains andpreparation methods, such as a cigarette, can be considered a mere setof chemicals that correspond to the targeted experience. Where that setof chemicals is to be reproduced via other (preferably easier to sourceand less expensive) feedstock, the targeted experience may be reproducedas well.

Herein are disclosed techniques to reproduce a targeted experience.Specifically, techniques to infuse a flammable substrate, such ascigarette paper, with chemicals corresponding to a targeted experienceare among those disclosed. Some of the techniques may include use of amechanical printer as the method of infusion.

There are many variations of filler, such as tobacco, forms of cannabis,or coconut husk, to name three. Note that the filler for the flammablesubstrates are themselves sets of chemicals. Techniques to create achemical signature, i.e., a set of chemicals and characteristics of eachrespective chemical, such as an amount that take into account the amountof the flammable substrate, the filler, and/or fixative agents, as toreproduce a targeted experience are also disclosed.

FIG. 1 is a context diagram 100 for an example of customizable printablesolutions for delivery of inhalants.

In the example shown in FIG. 1 , a user 102 has a computer 104 and achemical printer 106. The chemical printer 106 has a set of chemicalsthat it can infuse into a flammable base substrate such as cigarettepaper via piezoelectric, thermal, or equivalent printing techniques. Thechemicals may include active ingredients such as tetrahydrocannabinol,cannabidiol, terpenes, or oils. Other chemicals may include flavoringssuch as mint and menthol. Still other chemicals may include fixativeagents or preservatives. The chemical printer 106 is described infurther detail with respect to FIG. 4 below.

The computer 104 may communicatively access a chemical signaturedatabase engine 108 which may be a software database engine server. Thechemical signature database engine 108 may be connected to a chemicalsignature database 110. The chemical signature database 110 may containat least a plurality of chemical signatures, each comprised of a set ofidentifiers for various chemicals. Each chemical in the chemicalsignature may be associated with an amount and other data in a databaseheld in the chemical signature database 110. When received by theprinter 106, the printer may then select chemicals corresponding to theidentifiers in the signature and subsequently print quantities of theselected chemicals into a substrate according to the chemical signature.Chemical signatures are described in further detail with respect to FIG.2 below.

Chemical signature database engine 108 and chemical signature database110 may both be remote from the computer 104, accessible, e.g., via theinternet, and/or may be resident in a cloud installation 112. Examplesof the hardware, software, and communications infrastructure aredescribed in more detail with respect to FIG. 3 below.

To effect customizable printable solutions for the delivery ofinhalants, user 102, via computer 104, may create a query 114 for thechemical signature 116 from chemical signature database engine 108. Thequery 114 may be comprised of a brand name or other indicator for adesired targeted experience. Specifically, if a user is aware of aparticular blend of cannabis X, it can specify a brand name for X andretrieve the chemical signature for X.

It may not be enough to merely retrieve a chemical signature for X. Theuser 102 may also be aware of the fixative agent (used to ensure theprinted chemicals are not easily removed from the substrate), flammablesubstrate, and/or filler the user 102 is intending to use along with thechemical signature. One or more of these ingredients may be selectableseparately or in concert with the indication and retrieval of thechemical signature in some embodiments. The chemical signature databaseengine 108 may then retrieve the chemical signature X modified by thechemical signatures of the fixative agent, flammable substrate, and/orfiller. In this way, the retrieved chemical signature 116 may take intoaccount the other ingredients in the final product, and thereby achievesthe intended targeted experience.

Alternatively, the user computer 104 and/or the chemical printer 106 mayhave the capability to modify chemical signatures, and the user 102merely retrieves the chemical signature 116 for X. In this scenario thecomputer 104 receives the chemical signature 116 for X, and thenmodifies the chemical signature 116 for the chemical signatures for thefixative agent, flammable substrate, and/or filler.

In other embodiments, the user 102 may specify custom modifications tothe chemical signature 116. This may be performed on the user computerby a chemical signature editor (not shown). Example modifications wouldbe to increase the amount of active chemicals and/or to add flavorings.In this way, a user 102 may customize a targeted experience.

Regardless of whether the chemical signature database engine 108 or theuser computer 104 modifies the chemical signature 116 or the usercustomizes the chemical signature 116, the modified chemical signatureis then sent to chemical printer 106 which then prints the chemicalsspecified in the signature onto the flammable substrate 118. Along withthe chemicals specified in the signature, the chemical printer 106 mayalso print fixative agents, flavorings, preservatives, and/or otheradditives.

After printing, the printed flammable base substrate 118 may be used toroll filler 120. Examples of filler may be active ingredients such asstrains of cannabis and/or tobacco, and/or neutral fillers such as cornhusk, grass, and coconut husk. Upon rolling filler 120 with the printedflammable base substrate 118, the combination yields a final product122. The final product 122 when consumed may then yield a targetedexperience, subject to a tolerance in some embodiments. Tolerances aredescribed in further detail with respect to FIG. 2 below.

Exemplary Chemical Signatures and Operations on Chemical Signatures

Customization with respect to customizable printable solutions fordelivery of inhalants may refer to the specifying of a targetedexperience via a set of chemicals associated at least with quantities.FIG. 2 is a diagram 200 of exemplary chemical signatures and operationson chemical signatures.

A chemical signature may be comprised of a set of chemical identifiersand associated data. An example of a set of chemical identifiers mayinclude:

CBD (representing cannabidiol)

LMN (representing limonene (a terpene)

MRC (representing myrcene (another terpene)

MTH (representing menthol (a flavoring)

DPG (representing dipropylene (a fixative agent))

The set of chemical identifiers may be used to create a histogram whichrepresents an amount of the chemical identified by the identifier to beprinted by the chemical printer 106. In many cases, the chemical printer106 is programmed to print out a constant amount of the chemicalsidentified in the chemical signature. In this case, the chemical printer106 may, for example, take the amount of the chemical identified by thechemical signature, divide it by the amount of time anticipated for thechemical printer 106 to print out a line along the length of a substrate118, and print the chemical according to that ratio.

However, in some cases, the chemical signature may be comprised of atime series of histograms, each histogram indicating the amount of thechemical in the chemical signature to print at a particular point intime. Software on the chemical printer 106 (or external software), maycalculate ratios, and print the chemical by the calculated ratio. Forexample, if a chemical signature indicates that it is anticipated thatthe product 122 is to be consumed over 7 minutes, and that 5 units ofcannabidiol (CBD) will be provided in the first half of consumption and2 units of CBD in the second half of consumption, the chemical printer106 will print 5 units over the first half of a printed line, and 2units over the second half, where the length of the line is expected toburn for 7 minutes. In this way, the delivery of a particular chemicalin a chemical signature can be customized over the time of consumptionof the product 122.

FIG. 2 is a diagram 200 of various chemical signatures in the form ofhistograms 204, 206, and 208. Block 202 illustrates operations tospecify signatures according to a delta. Specifically, consider anexample in which a histogram 204 describes a targeted experiencesignature that would be usually delivered via an expensive form ofcannabis, and the user 102 wishes to reproduce the targeted experiencewith a less expensive composition of cannabis to be used as a filler120. A goal would then be to determine the delta between the filler 120and the composition of the cannabis for the targeted experience, andprint the same.

In the example shown in FIG. 2 , the histogram 204 specifies a set offive chemicals and their associated quantities (represented by bars fromleft to right corresponding to a “first chemical,” a “second chemical,”etc., respectively), and represents a chemical signature that may besuited for the targeted experience. The height of each bar indicates theamount of the corresponding chemical in the targeted experiencesignature, in arbitrary units represented by the number beneath the bar(i.e., two units of the first chemical are present, ten units of thesecond chemical are present, etc.). Histogram 206 represents a chemicalsignature for the substitute filler, and specifies the same set ofchemicals in the targeted experience signature, but with the respectiveassociated quantities indicating the quantities in the filler 120 to beused by the user 102. Here, note that the histogram 206 shows shorterbars for the chemicals compared with those of the histogram 204. Thisindicates higher concentrations of the chemicals in the targetedexperience signature.

To determine the chemical signature to be printed by chemical printer106, we can take the difference between the two histograms 204 and 206.For example, the delta of the first chemical is the difference between 2units of that chemical in the “targeted” histogram 204 and 1 unit in the“filler” histogram 206, yielding a corresponding 1 unit (i.e., 2 units−1unit=1 unit) to be printed as indicated in the “printer” histogram 208,which represents the chemical signature of the difference between thetargeted experience signature and the filler chemical signature (i.e.,specifying the difference in the same set of chemicals between the twosignatures). In the printer histogram 208, we can see that we have takenthe differences between the targeted histogram 204 and the fillerhistogram 206 for all chemicals identified in those histograms in thisexample embodiment. Accordingly, the printer need only print theadditional chemicals as represented by the printer chemical signature208 to recreate or at least approximate the targeted experience.

While block 202 shows only operations with respect to filler, the sameanalogous operations may be performed for other ingredients such asfixative agents, preservatives, and the flammable substrate itself. Theprinter histogram 208 may also be hand modified and/or customized by theuser 102 as desired.

In some examples, while some portion of the targeted experience may berecreated, a portion of a targeted experience might not. For example,certain sensory, pharmaceutical, or physical effects might not bereproduced. In some cases, this may be because not all the chemicalscomprising the experience are accounted for. In other cases, the amountof chemical added via the printer is not precise.

In such cases, the user 102 may adopt a strategy of reproducing atargeted experience according to a predetermined tolerance.Specifically, the user may accept a printer histogram that is thedifference between the targeted experience histogram and the fillerhistogram plus or minus some quantity of units, i.e., a predeterminedtolerance.

Block 210 illustrates an example of printing to a tolerance. By way ofexample, a user 102 may accept a predetermined tolerance of plus orminus 1 unit in the number of units for a first chemical, and thetargeted histogram 212 shows zero units of that chemical. In thisexample, the presence of the first chemical may be considered animpurity. However, if the filler histogram 214 shows that 1 unit of thatfirst chemical is present, the first chemical as a lesser qualitysubstance may be acceptable, even as an impurity, because it is withinthe predetermined tolerance of plus or minus 1 unit.

Accordingly, we can take a difference between the targeted histogram 212and the filler histogram 214, and generate a printer histogram 216 that,while not precise, is nevertheless within the predetermined tolerance.In such examples, it may be that the first chemical in the printerhistogram should be −1 (e.g., 0 desirable units in the targetedexperience signature but 1 unit in the filler chemical signature), butone cannot print a negative quantity. Accordingly, 0 units is acceptedfor the printer chemical signature instead since 1 unit from the fillerhistogram 214 and 0 from the printer histogram 216 yields 1 unit, whichis still within the predetermined tolerance of the targeted histogramamount of 0 units.

Tolerances can support overshooting. For example, for the secondchemical in the FIG. 2 example of printing to tolerance, the fillerhistogram indicates 7 units, and the printer histogram indicates 4 unitsyielding a total of 11 units. However, the targeted histogram indicates10 units. Again, since this is within the predetermined tolerance ofplus or minus 1, this amount of the second chemical in the printerchemical signature is acceptable.

Tolerances similarly support undershooting. For the third chemical, thefiller histogram indicates 3 units, and the printer histogram indicates1 unit, yielding a total of 4 units. However, the targeted histogramindicates 5 units. Yet again, since this is within the predeterminedtolerance of plus or minus 1, this amount of the third chemical in theprinter chemical signature is acceptable.

This notion of predetermined tolerances can be applied to a time seriesof histograms as well, thereby enabling the calculation of histogramsfor printing over the time of consumption of a product 122.

Exemplary Environment for Customizable Printable Solutions for Deliveryof Inhalants

FIG. 3 is a hardware, software, and communications diagram for anexemplary environment for customizable printable solutions for deliveryof inhalants to be implemented.

The functionality for customizable printable solutions for delivery ofinhalants may be generally hosted on computing devices. Exemplarycomputing devices include without limitation on the client-side: mobiledevices (including smart phones), tablet computers, laptops, desktoppersonal computers and kiosks. Exemplary computing devices on theserver-side include without limitation: mainframes, physical servers,and virtual machines. Generally, the computing devices may be networked.

A client-side computing device, or “client,” 302 may have a computerprocessor 304 and a computer readable memory 306. The processor may be acentral processing unit, a repurposed graphical processing unit, and/ora dedicated controller such as a microcontroller. The computing devicemay further include an input/output (I/O) interface 308, and/or anetwork interface 310. The I/O interface 308 may be any controller card,such as a universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART) used inconjunction with a standard I/O interface protocol such as RS-232 and/orUniversal Serial Bus (USB). The network interface 310, may potentiallywork in concert with the I/O interface 308 and may be a networkinterface card supporting Ethernet and/or Wi-Fi and/or any number ofother physical and/or datalink protocols. Alternatively, the networkinterface 310 may be an interface to a cellular radio.

Memory 306 is any computer-readable media which may store severalsoftware components including an operating system 312 and softwarecomponents 314 and/or other software applications 316 including aninternet browser or application integrating internet browsingcapability. In general, a software component is a set of computerexecutable instructions stored together, e.g., on one or morenon-transitory computer-readable media, as a discrete whole. Operatingsystems 312 and applications 316 are themselves software components orintegrated aggregations of software components. Examples of softwarecomponents 314 include binary executables such as static libraries,dynamically linked libraries, and executable programs. Other examples ofsoftware components 314 include interpreted executables that areexecuted on a run time such as servlets, applets, p-Code binaries, andJava binaries. Software components 314 may run in kernel mode and/oruser mode.

Computer-readable media may include, at least, two types ofcomputer-readable media, namely computer storage media andcommunications media. Computer storage media includes both volatile andnon-volatile, both removable and non-removable media implemented in anymethod or technology for storage of information such as computerreadable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data.Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM,EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digitalversatile disks (DVD), Blu-Ray, or other optical storage, magneticcassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magneticstorage devices, or any other non-transmission medium that can be usedto store information for access by a computing device. In contrast,communication media may embody computer readable instructions, datastructures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal,such as a carrier wave, or other transmission mechanism. As definedherein, computer storage media does not include communication media.

The server-side computing device, or “server,” 318 may be any computingdevice that may participate in a network. The network may be, withoutlimitation, a local area network (“LAN”), a virtual private network(“VPN”), a cellular network, or the Internet. The server 318 may havehardware components analogous to the client-side computing device 302.Specifically, it will include a computer processor 320, a computermemory 322, an input/output interface 324 and/or a network interface326. In the memory 322 may be an operating system 328, softwarecomponents 330, and/or software applications 332. Server 318 hardwaremay differ from client hardware 302 in that processing power isgenerally more powerful to handle concurrent processes running andnetwork capacity is greater to communicate with multiple clients 302.Server-side software components 330 may include libraries and run-times(e.g., to run interpreted code). Server-side applications 332 mayinclude web servers (also called “application servers”) and databaseservers. Database servers hosted as a server-side application 332 mayaccess external database storage 334 in the form of a separate harddrive, or potentially an array of hard drives. In some situations, thearray of hard drives may be configured as a redundant array ofindependent disks (RAID), a set of potential configurations to preventdata loss in the event of a single disk failure.

In general, customizable printable solutions for delivery of inhalantsmay be implemented as a software service on a physical server as theserver 318. However, such a software service may also be hosted on thecloud 336 via a cloud service 338. Specifically, a cloud service 338 iscomprised of multiple physical computer servers which are disaggregatedvia a hypervisor.

The cloud service 338 itself may embody an abstraction of services.Common examples include service abstractions such as Platform as aService (“PAAS”), Infrastructure as a Service (“IAAS”), and Software asa Service (“SAAS”).

Where the physical computer servers each may have one or moreprocessors, memory, at least an I/O interface and/or network interface,the features and variations of the processors, memory, the I/Ointerface, and the network interface for virtual machines aresubstantially similar to those described for the physical computerserver 318 described above.

A cloud service 338 includes a hypervisor which can delegate calls toany portion of hardware in the underlying physical serves, and uponrequest generates a virtual machine from the separate portions ofhardware, regardless of physical server (a process called“disaggregation”). Just as a physical server 318, a virtual machine mayhost not only software applications, components including services, butalso virtual web servers 340 functionality and virtual storage/database342 functionality.

Note that virtual machines themselves may be further partitioned intocontainers, which enable execution of a program in an independent subsetof the virtual machine. Software such as Kubernetes, Mesos, and Dockerare examples of container management software. Unlike virtual machineswhich have a delay in startup due to the need for provisioning an entireOS, containers may be generated more quickly and on demand since theunderlying virtual machine is already provisioned.

Exemplary Printer for Customizable Printable Solutions for Delivery ofInhalants

The chemical printer 106 may be an apparatus to infuse substrates 118with chemicals. FIG. 4 is a block diagram 400 of an exemplary chemicalprinter 106 for printable inhalant solutions.

A chemical printer 106 may be configured to receive a printed substrate118 such as a sheet of cigarette rolling paper, for example. In thisexample, the chemical printer 106 receives the substrate 118 andcontrols the vertical position of the printer via a roller 402 whichmoves the substrate 118 vertically, via a roller engine 404. The rollerengine 404 may be controlled via a hardware controller chip (orequivalent component on a system on chip (SoC)) 406.

Chemicals 408 may be infused onto and/or into the printed substrate 118via a printer head 410 which has a plurality of nozzles 412. Nozzles 412may correspond to the chemical to be printed. Printer head 410 maycomprise piezo-electric printer heads or thermal (sometimes calledbubble) printer heads.

Infusing the substrate 118 horizontally may be achieved by moving theprinter head 410 horizontally via a belt 414 attached to a stepper motor416. The stepper motor is controlled via a hardware controller chip (orsimilar component, e.g., on an SoC) 418.

Chemicals may be sent to the printer head 410 via printer lines 418connected to chemical receptacles 420, each of which contains arespective chemical of the set of chemicals 408, for example. In someembodiments, a receptacle 420 may be associated with a sensor 422 whichmay indicate the amount of chemical in the receptacle 420 or otherattributes. The sensors 422 are communicatively coupled to thereceptacle controller 424 which may provide software notifications basedon information received from the sensors 422. In some embodiments, thereceptacle controller 424 may be a hardware controller chip (or similarcomponent, e.g., on an SoC).

Information and control commands from the roller engine controller 406,stepper motor controller 418, and receptacle controller 424 flow backand forth from the processor 426 via a bus (not shown), which may beexternal, or internal if on an SoC. Processor 426 may be incommunicative control with a computer memory 428 configured to storecomputer executable instructions. The chemical printer 106 in generalmay be configured to be a computer client 302 as shown in FIG. 3 . Insome examples, the specific software stored in the computer memory 428of the chemical printer 106 may include controller software,modification software, and/or chemical signatures 116 for printing. Theprinter software is described in further detail with respect to FIG. 5below.

Software and chemical signatures 116 may be received by the chemicalprinter 106 externally. Two options include a portable storage reader430 and a network controller 432. Specifically, the portable storereader 430 may interface with the chemical printer 106 via an I/Ointerface as set forth in client interface 308 in FIG. 3 . Otherinterfaces such as USB and serial interfaces may be used as well. Thenetwork controller 432 may correspond to client network controller 310in FIG. 3 .

Via the portable storage reader 430, software and chemical signatures416 may be uploaded to chemical printer 106 via USB drivers, SD cards,and other similar media. The network controller 432 enables thereception of software and chemical signatures 416 to the chemicalprinter 106. Local software on the printer may enable the reception andstoring into memory 428. The functions of the chemical printer may bepowered by electric power supply 434.

The foregoing description of chemical printer 106 is not intended to beexhaustive or limiting. Rather, the description is intended toillustrate the customized printing of chemicals for delivery ofinhalants. Features such as chassis, power management, and paper feedmanagement may be incorporated into the chemical printer 106, as wouldbe understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.

Exemplary Software Specific to Customizable Printable Solutions forDelivery of Inhalants

FIG. 5 is a block diagram 500 of example client and server softwareprinter components 502 and/or applications for customizable printablesolutions for delivery of inhalants. As such, the example client andserver components and/or applications may comprise the operationalsoftware of chemical printer 106, software user computer components 504comprising the operational software of user computer 504, and servercomponents 506 comprising the operational software of the server sidefunctionality for customizable printable solutions for delivery ofinhalants.

Printer software components 502 may be resident in printer memory 428and comprised of computer executable instructions and computer readabledata. For example, the printer software components 502 may be comprisedof an operating system 312 and printer controller drivers 502. Recallthat the printer has several controllers, including the roller enginecontroller 406, stepper motor controller 418, and receptacle controller424. Printer software components 502 may include drivers that providethe software interface between the operating system 312 of the chemicalprinter 106 and the controllers 406, 418, 424. Printer software 512 mayprovide a user interface to provide notifications to the user about thestatus of the chemical printer 106 and to enable the user to configurethe chemical printer 106.

Applications chemical signature uploader 514 and chemical signaturecustomizer 516 may relate to the operation of the chemical printer 106to receive chemical signatures as well as modify chemical signaturesaccording to user specifications. In the case of the chemical signatureuploader 514, a user may use USB, the portable storage reader 430, orthe network interface 432 to upload chemical signatures for printing. Insome embodiments, the chemical signature uploader 514 may handle thedifferent I/O and network signals and protocols to receive softwarenotifications that a signature is being uploaded, buffer the receivedsignature, and store the received signature in a location in memory 428where the signature may be located.

Once the signature is stored, the chemical signature customizer 516 maymodify the chemical signature. For example, a user may use the chemicalsignature customizer 516 to store default settings for chemicalsignatures of filler 120, printed substrate 118, fixative agents,preservatives, and the like. The chemical signature customizer 516 maythen modify received signatures to satisfy default setting for thechemical signatures. The chemical signature customizer 516 may alsoreceived custom modifications as specified by the user via the chemicalsignature customizer 516 user interface for any purpose whatsoever. Thechemical signature customizer 516 may then accordingly adjust thereceived signatures to take those custom settings into account.

Turning to the user computer software components 504, the user computer104 also has a memory 306. Resident in memory 306 is an operating system312 that enables the operation of applications. Query tool 518 is a toolto query the database engine 108 for chemical signatures. The query tool518 may be a local application or may be a web application operatingwithin a web browser on the user computer 104.

Once the user 102 has retrieved one or more chemical signatures via thequery tool 518, the user may edit the chemical signatures via thechemical signature editor 520. Here the chemical signature editoroperates similarly to the chemical signature customizer 516 on theprinter, except that the editing may be done interactively by user 102on computer 104. The operation of client side software is described inmore detail with respect to FIG. 7 .

The server software 506 may be resident in a server memory 322 or in avirtual machine in the cloud 336, for example. The server software 506may include an operating system 328. Typical server software includes aweb server 522 and a database engine 108 which may host databaseapplications. For web application embodiments, web server 522 may hostapplications that support a web interface for the query tool 518.Typical web servers include Apache and Tomcat. Web applications may theninteract with a database server (such as chemical signature databaseengine 108) which may be in the form of a relational database managementsystem (RDBMS) such as Microsoft SQL Server™ and Oracle Database™.

Upon receiving a query, the chemical signature database engine 108 (orweb application server 522 for some web application embodiments) mayquery a data store of signatures 110. Optionally the chemical signaturecustomizer 524 may modify chemical signatures before returning.

In some cases, the chemical signature database engine 108 (or webapplications server 522 for some web application embodiments) may haveneed of authentication services. An identity services server 526 whichstores user accounts and credentials may provide such authenticationservices. If downloaded chemical signatures are to be paid for, paymentservices 528 provide an interface to debit accounts. The operation ofserver side software is described in more detail with respect to FIG. 7.

FIGS. 6-7 present illustrative processes 600 and 700, respectively, forimplementing customizable printable solutions for delivery of inhalants.Each of the processes 600 and 700 is illustrated as a collection ofblocks in a logical flow chart, which represents a sequence ofoperations that can be implemented in hardware, software, or acombination thereof. In the context of software, the blocks representcomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by one or moreprocessors, perform the recited operations. Generally,computer-executable instructions may include routines, programs,objects, components, data structures, and the like that performparticular functions or implement particular abstract data types. Theorder in which the operations are described is not intended to beconstrued as a limitation, and any number of the described blocks can becombined in any order and/or in parallel to implement the process. Fordiscussion purposes, the processes 600 and 700 are described withreference to the architecture 100 of FIG. 1 .

Exemplary Printer Operation for Customizable Printable Solutions forDelivery of Inhalants

FIG. 6 is a flow chart 600 for exemplary printer operations forcustomizable printable solutions for delivery of inhalants. Morespecifically, flow chart 600 describes example printer operations toprepare a solution for printing and mechanically printing the solutionfor delivery of inhalants.

In block 602, a user 102 may select software identifiers for one or morechemicals comprising a selected set of identified chemicals. Theselected set of identified chemicals may be represented in a histogramas described elsewhere herein. The chemicals may correspond to chemicalsto be printed by the chemical printer 106 and/or to chemicals containedin filler 120, substrate 118, or fixative agents and/or preservatives.In this way, the chemicals to comprise the chemical signatures to beprocessed and retrieved are set.

In block 604, the user 102 may, for each identified chemical in theselected set, create a chemical specification, the specificationincluding at least a quantity of the respective selected chemical, andthe specifications in aggregate comprising the chemical signature of theselected set of identified chemicals in some embodiments. The quantityof units may be based on a targeted experience. Accordingly, the usermay specify the quantity of units by retrieving chemical signatures fromthe database engine 108 via the query tool 518 in some embodiments.Alternatively, or in addition, the user may upload chemical signaturesvia USB, portable storage via portable storage reader 430, or from thenetwork via network controller 432.

Note that chemical signatures from third parties or database 430 mayhave different or additional chemicals in their signatures. Having user102 specify the chemicals or chemical signatures available to work withvia selecting chemicals to comprise the chemical signature in block 602enables the definition of a common set of histograms, and thereforeenables operations between those chemical signatures.

In block 606, the user 102 may select a solvent and a solvent quantitybased at least on one chemical specification in the chemical signature,the solvent suitable for dissolving the specified chemicals in thechemical signature and for printing onto a predetermined flammable basesubstrate. For example, the user 102 may select a solvent suitable fordissolving the chemicals to be printed i.e., the chemicals specified inblock 602.

In block 608, the chemicals in the chemical signature may be dissolvedinto the selected solvent in accordance with or in response to theselection, either individually or in combination. The solvent may be oilor water, but in some cases may be combined with a fixative agent suchas dipropylene. In this way, when the chemicals are printed onto aflammable substrate 118, the chemicals may not evaporate quickly andthereby negatively impact the printing process.

In block 610, the chemical printer 106 may mechanically print thedissolved chemicals onto the flammable substrate 118.

Exemplary Software Operation for Customizable Printable Solutions forDelivery of Inhalants

FIG. 7 is a flow chart 700 for exemplary client and server softwareoperations for customizable printable solutions for the delivery ofinhalants. Specifically, flow chart 700 describes the software steps onboth client and server side when querying and modifying chemicalsignatures for targeted experiences.

In block 702, via a network connect, a chemical signature databaseengine 108 (or web application which forwards a received query) mayreceive a query for a chemical signature of a printable inhalantsolution. The network connection may be via the internet or may be alocal network connection, for example. In some embodiments, the querywill be from query tool 518.

The query tool 518 may allow for a wide range of queries. Some optionsinclude querying by brand name, querying by concentration by amount ofchemicals, and querying by similarity to a chemical signature. Regardingthe last two options, since chemical signatures correspond tohistograms, query results may be ranked via use of histogram similaritymeasures.

Note, also, that the database engine 108 may store user generatedcontent such as identity of uploader, rankings, and reviews.Accordingly, the query tool 518 may query according to those values aswell.

Prior to processing a query, in block 704, a web application or serverside application may authenticate, at an identity software component,the identity of the sender of the query by receiving credentials andforwarding them to identity services 526. Identity services 526 maydelegate authentication to third party services such as Google™ andFacebook™ or alternatively authenticate against credentials directlymanaged by identity services 526. In this way, an account associatedwith the querying party, here user 102, may be retrieved. In block 706,this account may be used to identify a payment account for the sender ofthe query for performing payments based at least on the authentication.

Based on the query, if authentication succeeds, in block 708, thedatabase engine 108 may respond to the received query and retrieve froma database 110 of chemical signatures, one or more chemical signaturesof printable inhalant solutions. In some embodiments, the query mayinclude a chemical signature comprised of a set of chemicals.

In some embodiments, the database engine 108 may retrieve fullsignatures but only perform query matches using histogram distancemeasures against the subset of chemicals specified in the query. Inother embodiments, the database engine 108 may include rules thatdetermine whether chemicals not included in the query may causeundesirable qualitative effects when printed.

In some embodiments, a user 102 may have uploaded chemical signatures offiller 120, printed substrate 118, fixative agents, preservatives, andthe like, or of customizations. In this case, in block 710, the databaseengine 108 (or web application for some web embodiments) via a chemicalsignature customizer 524 may modify a chemical signature beforereturning it for response, based on information in the received query.In this way, the user 102 need not edit returned results prior toprinting.

In block 712, the chemical signatures retrieved by the database engine108 (and optionally modified by chemical signature customizer 524) mayreturn the search results including the chemical signature. In somecases, the user may specify receiving additional information about theretrieved chemical signature or signatures. These include user generatedcontent, such as textual or media reviews of the chemical signature,comments, and ratings. Other additional information may includeinstructions on how to make use of the chemical signature.

If the retrieved results are to be paid for, in block 714, the databaseserver 108 (or web application) may invoke payment services 528 anddebit the payment account retrieved in block 706 accordingly. In someembodiments, the debiting may be in response to or based at least oncompleting processing of the received query. In this way, a wide rangeof monetization techniques and business models are enabled.

CONCLUSION

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above.Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed asexample forms of implementing the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method to generate a printable inhalantsolution, comprising: selecting identifiers for one or more chemicalscomprising a selected set of identified chemicals; for each identifiedchemical in the selected set, create a chemical specification, thespecification including at least a quantity of the respective selectedchemical, the specifications in aggregate comprising a chemicalsignature of the selected set of identified chemicals; and mechanicallyprinting a printable solution onto a predetermined flammable basesubstrate.
 2. The method of claim 1, comprising, prior to mechanicallyprinting, preparing the printable solution via: selecting a solvent anda solvent quantity based at least on one chemical specification in thechemical signature, the solvent suitable for dissolving the specifiedchemicals in the histogram and for printing onto a predeterminedflammable base substrate; and dissolving the specified chemicals in thehistogram into the selected solvent and solvent quantity into aprintable inhalant solution.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein at leastsome of the selected identified chemicals in the chemical signature areorganic chemicals including at least one of the following: a terpene,cannabidiol, and tetrahydrocannabidiol.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein at least one of the chemical specifications in the chemicalsignature includes a time curve indicating the amount of the respectiveidentified chemical to be delivered over time.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein at least one of the chemical specifications in the chemicalsignature is a delta of a corresponding chemical specification for asecond material.
 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the second material,is the flammable base substrate, and the delta is with respect to achemical signature of known predetermined blend of chemicals.
 7. Themethod of claim 6, wherein the flammable base substrate is any one ofthe following: corn husk, grass, and coconut husk.
 8. The method ofclaim 6 wherein known predetermined blend of chemicals is based at leaston the chemical signature of a known blend of cannabis.
 9. The method ofclaim 6, wherein the second substance is a flavoring.
 10. The method ofclaim 9, wherein the flavors are any one of the following: menthol, andmint.
 11. The method of claim 6, wherein the chemical signature of thepredetermined blend of chemicals is a customed chemical signaturereceived from a user.
 12. An apparatus to print a printable inhalantsolution, comprising a roller configured to receive a flammable basesubstrate; a set of receptacles containing a respective set ofchemicals; a mechanical print head comprised of at least one nozzleconfigured to receive at least some of the chemicals in the set ofreceptacles; a print head stepper motor connected to the print head witha belt, configured to move the print head back and forth across theroller; a computer processor, configured to execute one or more computerinstructions; a computer memory, communicatively coupled to the computerprocessor, configured to store a received chemical signature andcomputer instructions to print the received chemical signature onto theflammable base substrate.
 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein theprint head is any one of the following: piezoelectric print head; orthermal print head.
 14. The apparatus of claim 12, comprising: a networkconnection, wherein the received chemical signature is received via thenetwork connection from a remote database of chemical signaturesresponsive to a query.
 15. The apparatus of claim 12, comprising aportable storage media reader, wherein the received chemical signatureis received from a portable storage over the portable storage mediareader.
 16. An apparatus to serve printable inhalant solutions,comprising: a computer processor configured to execute one or morecomputer executable instructions; a computer memory, communicativelycoupled to the computer processor, configured to store computerexecutable instructions; a database engine software component stored inthe computer memory, configured to receive and respond to queries for achemical signature of a printable inhalant solution, wherein theprintable inhalant solution is a delta with respect to a chemicalsignature of known predetermined blend of chemicals; a chemicalsignatures database storage, communicatively coupled to the databaseengine software component, configured to store a plurality of chemicalsignatures of printable inhalant solutions; and a network connectioncommunicatively coupled to the database engine software component toforward received queries from a network to the database engine softwarecomponent and to forward query responses from the database enginesoftware component including a retrieved chemical signature of aprintable inhalant solution responsive to a received query.
 17. Theapparatus of claim 16, comprising a database storage configured to storeuser account information.
 18. The apparatus of claim 17, comprising abilling software component configured to debit a payment accountassociated with the stored user account information in the data based atleast on the database engine software component processing a receivedquery.
 19. The apparatus of claim 17, comprising an identity softwarecomponent, configured to authenticate received requests, wherein thedatabase engine software component is configured to process receivedqueries contingent on authentication by the identify software component.20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the database storage isconfigured to store content associated with a printable inhalantsolution, and the database engine software component is configured toserve content associated with a printable inhalant solution responsiveto a query, the content including one or more of the following: usergenerated content, instructions, and ratings.